cr> Eppley on QUESTION of open net survival

1996-01-25

Richard Moore

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Date: Thu, 25 Jan 1996
Sender: "Steve Eppley" <•••@••.•••>
Subject: Re: cr> re: QUESTION of open net survival

Jason Wehling wrote:
>Richard Moore wrote:
>> I'm convinced survival is unlikely, not because the two _couldn't_
>> co-exist, but because of strategic political considerations -- the
>> potential threat is too great that Internet could enable large-scale,
>> grass-roots, political organizing.  The "establishment" doesn't want a
>> technology-enabled New Left (or whatever) on its hands, and the tools are
>> being put in place to clamp down.
>
[snip]
>As for the government, it tends to want control, especially over content.
[snip]

I'd express this differently: the government wants to prevent the
demand for government info from growing.  They don't want the easy
public oversight which the net will enable, nor do they want to be
drawn by popular demand into open discussion groups where they can't
control the microphones.  They're at the top of a hierarchy which the
net can flatten, irrespective of left or right.

The net could enable a number of political applications which the
corporatists would fear.  Cheap organizing, as Richard mentioned
above.  Online databases for boycotts & goodguy alternatives.
Electronic townhalls where the issues which don't get aired in the
corporate media would get addressed.  These apps don't need the
bandwidth of video-on-demand; they need new software (mobware).

These next few years are critical since only a minority of the people
have net access.  Stall the deforms until there are more people
interested in the net's well-being.

---Steve     (Steve Eppley    •••@••.•••)

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 Posted by Richard K. Moore (•••@••.•••) Wexford, Ireland
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